


That Fateful Day

by CoolFireBird



Category: Layton Kyouju Series | Professor Layton Series
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-19
Updated: 2015-08-11
Packaged: 2018-03-13 20:35:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 19,557
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3395501
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CoolFireBird/pseuds/CoolFireBird
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The day that Targent came, The Bronevs find themselves struggling to stay together. Leon Bronev now must do whatever it takes to survive and protect his family.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1 - Long Night...

**Chapter 1**

“ **Long Night...”**

 

The loud rumbling, the clanging of metal against rock. That alone was difficult to hear over the motor of the large vehicle.

Not that it would do much good, by now it had been hours since Leon Bronev was kidnapped by strange men in uniform and he hadn't a clue where they were now.

The truck he was in was dark, he could tell from the small holes in the bottom of his blindfold, which his kidnappers hap-hazardly threw on as if it didn't matter. The knots around his wrists that had been pulled behind his back were, however, much tighter.

Loen tried messing with them earlier, but that earned him a painful smack against the back of his head. These people had guns and were reserving themselves from using them.

What they wanted with him, he wasn't clear on. He was just a small town archaeologist, he had no money, nothing to his name nor any outside family related to him or his wife.

Leon wasn't sure who else they had taken, though he guessed they grabbed his wife for that was the last thing he saw before the blindfold. He cursed himself for not fighting harder, but they had weapons pointing towards his two sons and he felt anymore struggle would have gotten them killed.

Leon would rather not test if these people were willing to actually shoot any of them.

Before he could think much further about his situation, the vehicle came to a halt.

“Move it.” grunted a gruff voice from in front of Leon.

Leon felt something jab him in the side, probably the gun handle, and his arms being grabbed to force him to his feet. He could hear the door opening and could see some light coming through the lose ends of the blindfold. When he stepped out, he heard his shoes hit what sounded like concrete, dust, and pebbles.

“Hey! Kid, stop it!”

“Don't touch my mum! She wasn't doing anything!”

“Hershel, it's okay.”

“Shut it, kid. Get moving.”

“Mum...”

“Shhh... Theodore, just stay close, sweetheart. It's going to be okay.”

Leon's heart sank hearing this. His fear was confirmed, his children and wife were taken along with him. They sounded together and he wondered why he had been separated from them.

“Come on, we told everyone to keep in line, just do what you're told.”

“I told you it was a bad idea to take their gags off.”

“Well the little one wouldn't stop his sniffling, I figured if he heard his mother, he'd stop. Ehh, why did Boss want the whole family anyway? I didn't...I didn't know Bronev had kids. This makes this complicated.”

“Well plans changed really fast today. We didn't get much on them before we had to go in.”

Leon realized the voices were getting further away. Where were they taking his family? Was he being separated again? What were these men talking about?

“Come on.”

“Wait.” Leon stopped dead in his tracks. “Where are you taking my family?”

Leon felt a rough shove to his shoulder, nearly knocking him over.

“You'll find out after talking to The Boss. Get moving.”

Leon was pushed forward. If he was going too slow they would push him again. From how he was being moved along, he guess there was at least two of these men with guns behind him. He could feel the cold metal hit his arms when they jabbed him sharply in impatience.

“Stop. Watch yourself, there's a step there.”

That voice was different and was coming from in front of him. A young feminine voice that sounded firm and full of authority. Was she their 'boss'? She also seemed to have an accent that he couldn't quite place, never hearing it before.

Leon felt a hand touch his shoulder and move him forward, slowly stepping up onto the new platform.

“Now boys, don't be so rough with Mister Bronev. He's had a long night.”

Leon tensed up when the owner of a new voice chuckled at his own words. He sounded like he was probably next to the women. The voice most likely belonged to an older man. Very old in fact, however his voice was a high pitch, with a bit of a wheeze. He also seemed to have a thick Scottish accent.

“Come along.”

Leon found the terrain changing and the sound of his steps becoming different. He was walking on a metal platform of some kind and was being lead upward.

“We're behind schedule, sir.” the women said with a bit of annoyance in her voice. “They took far too long to secure them.”

“Heh, Ji dear, don’t be hard on the men. They had more than one man to bring along. You know how family is, it takes forever to get anywhere. Am I right, Mister Bronev?”

Leon wasn't sure he was suppose to answer that, so he decided to remain quiet. It didn't take long before Leon was forced off the platform onto another metal surface, no longer heading upward.

“Let's discuss your future in a more comfortable atmosphere, eh?”

Leon was pushed along again, however it didn't take long before he was forced to stop once more.

“Take the blinds off him, they are unnecessary.” the old man's voice strained to carry over, having moved away.

Leon eyes forced closed when the sudden wave of light hit them, the guards removing the blindfold.

“The ties too.”

“You sure?” the women quickly jumped in, causing the guards to pause from undoing Leon's bounds.

“Of course. He won't run and he'll have no where to go. We're leaving port, now.”

“Yes sir.”

Now that Leon could see, what he saw wasn't what he was expecting. He was in a well-lit room with furnishing, lovely blue décor dressed the room up and mostly hid the metal plating of the walls and floor. There were large windows in the back room showing the outside that was nothing but ocean, which made Leon realize where he was.

They had him on a boat.

“Now, now, have a seat, Mister Bronev.”

Leon finally then noticed his captors. The old man had taken a seat in a large arm chair. He looked even older than Leon had imagined, having a crinkled face to the point his eyes seemed to have disappeared behind them and his huge bushy eyes brows.

The young woman was standing next to the elder man, a hard look on her face. She was also wearing a uniform, however her's was modified into a more business suit style. Her black hair was slicked back and she had small glasses on her face. The young woman's appearance was very foreign to Leon, definitely not from England.

Leon looked behind him to see the uniformed men untie his bonds. After doing so, they push Leon over to the couch in the center of the room, where the old man was sitting.

The old man smiled at Leon as he was forced to sit down. He then leaned on his cane, bending over and craning himself forward.

“Welcome aboard Targent's finest ship, the Isolde. My name is Tomas Gearald and this is my lovely assistant Ji.”

“What have you done with my wife and sons?” Leon had hoped to sound more stern, but found he could barely get the words out. He was terrified.

“See, Ji?” Gearald motioned to Leon. “This man has his priorities straight. Your family is safe, Mister Bronev.” Gearald patted something in his lap, which had escape Leon's notice earlier. “As I said, we need to discuss your future here with us.”

Leon tensed up when he realized what Gearald was holding. It was a large folder containing all the notes and writings Leon had done on an ancient dead civilization known as The Azran, as well as some very important documents that a friend of his from London had sent him.

Professor Haris Stanwood, an old colleague of his from London had suddenly contacted him months earlier, asking if he would like to help Stanwood with some work on the Azran. Leon always had a fascination with them before, but never was able to get far with the subject until then.

Stanwood had started giving him new material to work with, mostly notes, pictures, and other small details, even inviting him to a site that Standwood was sure had old ruins. For a few months, Leon had been very busy with this until a week ago. That was the last time Leon heard from Standwood, who had sent Leon something they had found together.

“You see, this is what we are all about.” Gearald lifted up the folder, handing it to Ji. “We are all about The Azran. We are Targent. Anyone and everyone who are studying The Azran come to Targent. Or, as in your case, are brought to Targent.”

Ji flipped through Leon's notes. “You were brought into a project by a man named Standwood.” She eyed Leon. Clearly this was a problem. “And the two of you found some artifacts in a ruins that Targent hadn't found yet. By the time our team got them out of...” Ji paused, trying to find the right words. “...incompetent hands, Professor Stanwood had sent an important artifact to you for safe keeping. A rather important one for those ruins, in fact.”

Gearald chuckled. “Ji dear, you really should relax.”

Ji was more put off than before. “ _Well_ , sir, this could have been avoided if we had been more aggressive from the beginning. He had time to try and hide the key to the underground of those ruins. Now we have more than one mess to clean up.”

“I was hoping to give the good professor a chance, I thought maybe he would understand our purpose and would come willingly. However...” Gearald frowned. “Well, best not to speak about someone who isn't with us anymore.”

“Quite.” mumbled Ji who started to walk away from them. “I'll have Corrin look at this, sir.”

“Good, good.” Gearald turned to Leon. ”Yes, we had to decide how to handle this delicate situation.” Gearald laid back in his chair. “For instance, what to do with you.”

Leon glanced at Ji, who was still flipping through his notes as she left the room, before looking back at Gearald.

“You weren't an issue before, a small town archaeologist, no real name to yourself. Now we need to decide if we deal with you the same way we dealt with Professor Stanwood. Maybe you will see reason where he did not.”

Leon hadn't noticed how long he had stopped breathing until just now. He let out a deep breath, shaky and long. He was terrified and horrified by the news of his friend. Leon had felt at the time that something was odd in the letter Standwood had sent him with the artifact, or the fact that he sent him an artifact piece at all. Leon had no idea it was sent to him to hide it.

“But first we must rate your work.” Gearald grinned. “We weren't looking to take you in before, so I'm not sure how much is your own doing compared to Standwood. Once we rate it and if it's good enough, you and your family will be accepted into the Targent family, to immediately begin work on research into the Azran. We will offer room and board for you and your family, as well as a good education for the little ones. It would be very regrettable if you were to refuse this offer. I would hate to lose two great minds in just a short amount of time. Now what are your thoughts on this offer, Mister Bronev?”

Leon wasn't sure how to respond. He wasn't sure he could. What was Gearald offering him? Correction, forcing upon him. He made it sound like it was a choice, as if this was a career offer. But after what Leon could only guess what happened to Standwood...

Leon found his gaze lowering, his body shaking.

_Oh God... Is Rachel safe? The boys are probably confused and she has to keep them calm all alone..._

“This may seem overwhelming.” Gearald waved his hand to the two uniformed men behind Leon, motioning for them to the back door. “After all, we just pulled you here out of nowhere, while we gave Professor Standwood more time to think about this life changing moment. I understand if you need a moment to collect your thoughts. Maybe seeing your family safe and sound might help you make up your mind.”

Leon looked back up at Gearald. The idea that he could confirm that they were safe caught his attention.

“Much better.” said Gearald. “I knew I was right about you. Priorities. Family. I have a feeling you'll go far. As long as your work is just as good. Now...”

Gearald snapped his fingers and the uniformed guards opened the door. “Follow these gentlemen and they will take you to your loved ones. You can spend sometime with them and talk over everything. After all, it's best to make sure your better-half understands.”

Despite feeling so numb, Leon found himself slowly standing up and making his way out of the room. Now that he could see where he was going, he noticed how large the ship was, filled with lots of others like his captors in just about every hall and room they walked through. Most ignored them, or shot a glance at Leon before going back to whatever it was they were doing.

_This isn't new to them, is it?... Are they that use to kidnapping people?_

The men lead him down a stairway, that took them into a cargo room. Inside the room were a few more Targent men standing around, checking the many creates and items around the room, or just standing guard.

In the large room were a few guards standing around a young woman was kneeling down, holding a small boy in her right arm, while patting another boy's head, talking to him softly.

“Rachel!” Leon darted past his escorts, having forgotten them completely.

Rachel looked up to see Leon coming towards her. She stood up, still holding the youngest of her boys in her arm and the other she pulled close with her free arm, as Leon ran up to her.

“Leon, I'm so glad you're safe.” Rachel said softy, trying to keep herself from panicking for the sake of the little ones. “Why is this happening? What is going on?”

Leon hugged Rachel, so relieved to see her and the boys weren't hurt. “I'm so sorry. This is all my fault. This is all about my work, I'm sorry.”

Rachel pulls back to look Leon in the face. “No, Leon, whatever this is, it is not your fault. Just... explain to me what is happening.”

Leon took a deep breath. “These people... I believe these people came because of my work on The Azran. They want me to work for them. I think...I think they--” Leon stopped himself when he was saw his children, listening. He wasn't sure how much he should really say in front of them, but at the same time, he couldn't hide what was happening. “They did something to Haris and I'm not sure what they would do to us if I refuse them.”

Leon's face fell, feeling completely defeated. He couldn't protect his family, he felt he failed them. If they had just taken him, being forced into this wouldn't be so hard if he knew they were far from harm. However, they were here in this dangerous situation with him.

“Leon...” Rachel slowly set down the four year old next to his brother before turning back to Leon. She placed her hands on Leon's face, forcing him to look at her. “We will get through this, together. Don't forget that I'm here for you and that you do not have to deal with this alone. Understand?”

Leon smiled sadly at Rachel, taking one of her hands into his own. “You are right. Thank you.” He then turned to the boys, the younger one having moved closer to his older brother, who had wrap his small arm around him as best as he could.

The youngest sniffled, gripping tightly onto a small teddy bear that he somehow was able to keep, using it to find some comfort. He looked like he had been crying earlier, his face puffy and red.

The older boy was scanning the room, eying all the guards around them. He would rub his little brother's shoulder every time he heard him sniffle, trying to keep him calm.

“How are they doing?” whispered Leon to Rachel, concerned for their mental state.

Rachel bit her lower lip, stressed from the whole ordeal. “Hershel seems to be fine. Though... you know how he is.” Leon nodded in acknowledgment before Rachel continued. “Theodore is just confused and upset. I'm just glad those men didn't do anything. It took a while for him to calm down and I was scared his crying would set one of them off. I'm not sure how much the boys understand what's going on and now I don't know what to tell them. I'm sorry, I was hoping... you would know what to tell them.”

“I'll try to...explain.” Leon walked over to the boys and knelt down. As soon as he did, the younger boy, Theodore, rushed to him and gripped onto his father tightly, sobbing. Leon wrapped his arms around the small boy, placing a hand on the back of Theodore's head to pat him. “Hey, hey...”

“I wanna go home.” muttered Theodore, clutching his stuffed bear in one hand, the other grabbing and tugging at his father's shirt. “Please, dad...”

Leon winced, feeling completely powerless. He was struggling to find words that the young ones would comprehend without scaring them, but he was coming up with nothing.

“They aren't going to let us go home, are they?”

Leon looked past Theodore, at Hershel. He had a blank expression on his face, as if he was trying to detach himself from the whole situation. Hershel had always been smart for his age, which made some matters much easier to teach to him. But as a result also made hiding adult issues from him much, much harder for the parents.

Hershel glanced at his mother, who had the same grim look on her face as his father. His blank expression fell, looking dejected. He had long figured that this was bad, but even with being so intelligent, he was still a child. He couldn't think of what this all could mean, but his parents were upset so it was probably...

Yes, the only word that came to the six year old's mind was **bad**. “Ah... We're never going home... are we?”

“What?” Theodore mumbled, terrified. He then buried his face into his father's shirt, shaking his head. He didn't want to hear that, that was the last thing he wanted to hear.

Hershel stared at his father, hoping he would have an answer to that. Maybe Hershel was wrong, maybe his father had a plan. However, the look on his father's face told him otherwise and as much as Hershel was trying to keep a strong front, it was beginning to crumble with the uncertainty of their future.

“Come here, Hershel.” Leon motioned to Hershel to come towards him, reaching an arm out to him. The boy quickly walked over to his father and hugged him, along with his little brother, finally breaking into sobs himself.

“No matter what happens, please believe me when I tell you two this.” whispered Leon, trying to comfort them both and trying to keep his own composure. “Your mother and I love you both so much. I will do everything in my power to make this right. I may not be able to do anything now, but... I promise to make this right.”

Leon felt another pair of arms wrap around him, realizing Rachel had come up from behind him, hugging him and their two boys.

The four family members remained quiet, only the sound of the boat's engine and the occasional footsteps of the Targent members. They seemed to be ignoring them for the most part, Leon took note. Not surprising, it's not as if they could go anywhere. That did spring to mind a question Leon was a bit surprised he hadn’t thought about, though concerning the circumstances, could see why.

_'Where **are** we going?' _

Leon wondered how far from home they were being taken, considering they were traveling by sea. They could be taken anywhere and be stuck on this boat for any length of time.

Whoever these Targent people were, they seemed to be well funded and organized. Leon wondered if anyone would even notice that they were missing, if they would be looked for. They had a few friends back home, but Leon and his family had been known to go on trips out. Not hearing from them for a while wasn't unusual.

Hours had passed by now, having been kidnapped in the middle of the night and been dragged to the boat until the early morning. The total amount of time was a mystery, due to his watch being taken anyway when the guards searched him before loading him and his family into the trucks.

Everything about this seemed hopeless.

“Oh...” Rachel flinched, sounding out of breath. Leon noticed her breathing was becoming heavy, her loosening her grip on him and placing a hand on her chest. Was she in pain?

“Are you alright, Rachel?”

Rachel nodded. “Yes, yes.” She smiled at Leon, though her breathing hadn't changed. “I'm fine.”

Leon wasn't entirely convinced, however he decided to drop it for now. He looked down at his two sons, who had fallen asleep despite all the noise in the ship. They were far too exhausted, haven't gotten any sleep for hours.

It wasn't until now that Leon realized how tired he was. His legs were numbing from kneeling for so long and while he was sleepy, the anxiety and anger building up in him was keeping him wide awake.

At the moment, Leon decided the best way to handle this Targent group would be to play along and not give them any reason to use force or harm his family.

Yes, Leon would swallow his pride and work for these people.

For now.


	2. Chapter 2 - Longer Day

_**That Fateful Day** _

**Chapter 2**

“ **...Longer Day.”**

Hershel sighed deeply, feeling himself begin to wake up. He didn't wished too, for he was afraid that everything wasn't just a bad dream and waking up would confirm that.

Besides, he felt warm and comfortable where he was and would hate the ruin that. He was sure he was still with his father and for that, Hershel felt very safe despite everything. While he had worried so much before, he felt he would be protected as long as he stayed asleep.

Hershel knew how irrational that was, but he didn't care.

However, the sound of foot steps on metal and a low rumble of a boat engine did bother Hershel, which caused him to open his eyes halfway. Hershel found that he was indeed still with his father, his head resting on his shoulder.

Much to Hershel dismay, everything hadn't been just a nightmare.

They were all still in the cargo room of the ship, though they had moved into a corner, hidden behind some creates. He looked over to see his mother was still nearby, holding his little brother. Both were asleep, his mother leaning against his sleeping father.

No guards nearby, much to Hershel's surprise. He wondered if they thought so little of them escaping now that they left them be.

“...Over here...no one can hear you...”

“...my god... so loud...can hear...”

“Guards...everywhere...stupid...”

“No need...name...”

“...get over...”

“...Never agreed...”

Hershel tensed up as the voices grew closer, the echoing of the large cargo room making it hard to pick up exactly what they were saying. He slowly slipped out of his father's arm, trying not to wake him. Hershel walked to the end of the creates and peeked around the corner to see who had been talking.

Standing not too far away was a young woman and two men. They all seemed to be arguing.

“Corrin just lost a colleague.” said one of the men. He had short blond hair that he kept very neatly in place. He was dressed in a green suit, not matching any of the guards around. In fact he looked very out of place compared to everyone else. His voice had a bit of an accent to it, which Hershel was sure he heard it before. It was Scottish, though it was only a hint of it there.

“That doesn't mean he can slack off.” argued the young woman.

“Come on, Ji.” said the man standing behind the woman. He looked about her age, in fact his features were very similar, though while she was very clean and neat, he was not as such. His appearance was more thrown together, a white coat draped over his shoulders, the rest of his apparel being that of the regular uniform.

A bit effeminate, seemingly awkward, and acting very timid, the man was unable to look right at anyone before his gaze went back to the floor. His voice had a similar accent to Ji. “Let us not quarrel with Mister Fin.”

Hershel tensed as a hand came over his mouth quickly. He wanted to yelp, but then noticed it was his father who had come up from behind him.

Leon placed a finger on his lip, to signal Hershel to keep quiet before he let go of the boy. Leon hadn't wanted to startle him, but he had been afraid of Hershel's reaction if he quietly came up behind him. If Hershel had made a noise it would have revealed they were listening in. Leon wanted to know as much as he could about his captors.

Hershel sighed with relief and gripped his father's arm as they overheard the conversion, feeling a bit safer.

“Jin, why are you here?” shot the blonde haired man referred to as Fin, causing the one called Jin to retract into himself. “You should head back to Corrin, the man is in no state to be left alone.”

“No.” Jin said quietly, having stepped further behind Ji. “He's drunk, I'm not going anywhere near him.”

“Oh don't act so pathetic.” groaned Ji, giving Jin an annoyed glance before looking back at Fin. “But I can't blame him. Corrin is dumping all of his work on my little brother and is being irrational. I refuse to put up with this treatment, even if he won't stand up for himself.”

“You really shouldn't coddle him, my dear.” Fin smirked. “He's a big boy.”

“I am not!” Ji was losing her composure. She could tell she was beginning to show some signs of unprofessionalism and tried to pull herself together. “He just doesn't have the backbone to face Corrin.”

“Don't talk about me as if I'm not here.” complained Jin. “Besides, I only do it because Mister Gearald wants me to help him. I would work towards a transfer otherwise.”

“Father has a lot of faith in you, Jin. As do I.” Fin was rather bothered by the whole conversion. He began to inspect the room, which caused Leon to scoop up Hershel and pull him back with him to conceal themselves further.

Fin could see that some of the Targent guards had been staring at them. They quickly looked away when Fin saw this, trying to appear that they were working the whole time.

“Look, this is getting us no where. We have a lot to do today and we're arguing in front of the men. This isn't good for morale. Since you _are_ here, Jin, did you finish looking over Bronev's work?”

Jin nodded. “Yes, however Mister Corrin refused too. He hasn't signed off on it yet. Nor do I want him too while in a drunken stooper.”

“You said you liked Bronev's work.” said Ji, quite pleased with the results. “I trust your opinion more than that egomaniac anyway.”

“But Mister Corrin's opinion matters more to Mister Gearald.” whined Jin, becoming very distressed about the situation. “We can wait on this, can't we?”

“I'm sure Father will allow Jin's word to be enough, due to everything that has transpired.” Fin sighs. “Wish Father wouldn't regard that man's word so highly. It's his fault we took so long with Professor Standwood... His fault last night was just an awful mess.”

“Did you have to be there when they...?” Ji's demeanor changed. Her voice had been hostile and forceful before, but the sudden drop in aggressiveness was apparent. “Fin?”

“I'll talk to him.” Fin said softly to Jin, trying to avoid the conversion with Ji.

“Oh.” Jin was surprised by this comment. He tried to look directly at Fin. “Um...t-thank you, Mister Fin.”

“Jin... How many more years must I know you before you drop the 'mister'? Makes me feel old.” Fin expression soften, though it was a look of disappointment. “Look at us, we still argue like kids. I wouldn't let anyone else talk back to me like this.”

Jin shrugged. “It's not a matter of years, Mister Fin. I'm... “ Jin fixed the placement of his glasses, trying desperately to keep himself collected. “... I just haven't proven myself yet to your father.”

Ji walked up to Fin, placing a hand on his shoulder. “Please tell me he didn't make you--”

Fin brushed her hand aside. “No. He wouldn't. That still didn't make the whole affair pleasant. I had to be there and give the order, that's all. We have people for that, my dear.” Fin chuckled, though there was no real humor in his voice. “Besides, you know I'm not a fan of guns. I'm a terrible shot. Even at point-blank range I would have wounded the poor man first before putting him out of his misery.”

“I'm sorry, Mister Fin.” Jin shook his head. “That explains a lot...”

“Now, we'll be at the port in a few hours.” Fin straighten his suit, wanting off the topic as fast as possible. “There's a lot to unload and we have new members to indoctrinate into Targent.”

With that Fin walked off, leaving the two Targent Members behind.

Ji placed a hand on Jin, which caused him to flinch. She smiled and squeezed his shoulder tightly.

Their conversation changed, Leon and Hershel finding they couldn't understand them for they had switched to what seemed to be their native language.

As it went on, Jin just kept shaking his head at her in clear disagreement. Leon was sure he heard them talk about his family, or at least himself, 'Bronev' coming up a few times.

After a while Jin shoves Ji's hand off him and storms off, spatting out something to her before disappearing into a nearby door. Ji called out to him, following behind.

Hershel felt relieved to see them go. He found his hands were so tightly clutched onto his father that he was having difficulty letting go.

Hershel felt Leon's grip on him slowly ease, shifting him to a more manageable position on his father's lap. He could tell his father was troubled, though Hershel wasn't sure how he could help. Hershel leaned against Leon, both siting in silence and mauling over the events. The boy wondered what his father could be thinking about and a part of him was hoping it was a way to get back home.

Being realistic, it probably was just how to survive for the day.

Hershel's own mind was racing with trying to find ways to escape their dilemma. There wasn't any answer coming, which frustrated the young boy. They were on a boat and who knows how far they were away from home by now.

The boy now wanted nothing more than to hear something from his father. Anything, any reassuring word would help.

“Dad?” Hershel was surprised how scratchy his voice sounded. It seemed Leon hadn't heard him, so Hershel tried again, but this time tugging on his father's arm. “Dad?”

Leon looked down at Hershel, his expression revealing that he had either forgotten his son was there or hadn't expected him to say anything.

“Oh, Hershel.” Leon took a deep breath and ran a hand through his very messy hair. Hershel observed that his father looked terrible, disheveled, and very... defeated. It was an appearance Hershel was not use to seeing in his father.

No one had gotten any real sleep, having to sleep in a corner of the cargo room. The little boy also guessed that he, himself probably looked awful. He certainly felt horrible, his throat felt dry, his body tired.

“I'm sorry.”

Hershel frowned. He didn't want to hear that from his father, he didn't do anything wrong. The six year old buried his face in his father's shirt, which in turn Leon patted his head.

“How are you feeling?”

Hershel shrugged in response. He couldn't think of a good reply that wasn't a flat out lie or wouldn't worry his father. At the moment, Hershel felt dreadful.

“Are you still tired?”

Hershel was, but at the same time he didn't know if he should say he was. His mother and brother were still asleep, which seemed like a good idea. He would really like to try to get a few more minutes of sleep...

“You can go back to sleep.” said Leon, sounding tired as well.

Hershel shook his head. He didn't want to sleep now, he didn't want to put himself in a position where he didn't know what was going on. At the same time, he was so tired it was making his eyes watery and the speed of his breathing increased. He tried his hardest not to cry, but the whole situation was becoming overwhelming for the young boy.

All he wanted was to go home.

“Shhh...” Leon rubbed his son's back, trying to calm him. “It's okay, Hershel. Everything will be okay.”

“No, it won't.” Hershel found himself muttering bitterly. He didn't believe any of this would be _okay_. However he hadn't meant to let that thought out, he just didn't want to deal with pretending.

Leon pulled Hershel back and leaned his forehead against his son's. “I know. You're too smart for those hollow sayings, aren't you?”

Hershel fidgeted, finding no words to response with. He hated when his father did this, it made him look right at him and gave the young boy nothing to distract him from the conversion. But even so, that meant his father was going to be serious and sincere with him, which Hershel preferred.

Reality suited the boy better than adult lies.

“Truth is I don't know what's going to happen.” Leon's voice lowered to a whisper. “You trust me, right?”

“Yeah...” mumbled Hershel. “What are we going to do?”

“All I know is we have to stick together.” Leon rubbed the back of Hershel's head. “That's the only plan I have, I'm afraid. If I could get you, your brother and your mother far away from here, I would in a heartbeat. But as it stands, it doesn't look like I'll be able to do that.”

Hershel figured that was the case. He rubbed his eyes to try and get the sleepiness out of them, but to also to wipe away the forming tears. His father pulled Hershel close again, resting the boy's head on his shoulder.

“You are so brave, Hershel. I need you to be brave for your brother as well.”

Hershel could hear his father's voice choking up. It seemed his father was trying just as hard to stay strong throughout all this.

“I'm proud of you, you know that?”

Hershel nodded. Despite it all, that made the six year old feel better. He could trust his father to protect him, his little brother, and his mother. Hershel felt he had to do his best.

“They're over here. Been there all morning.”

Hershel's body tensed up, unable to bring himself to look at who the voice belonged too. He was sure it was one of those armed men that had abducted them. Hershel desperately tried not to let the fear build up, he refused to let these people see him weak.

“Come along. Now.”

Hershel felt his father shifting him around so he could stand while holding him. The last thing Hershel wanted was to go with these people, though he was quite aware that his father had no choice. He looked over to see someone walking towards his mother and brother, waking them up.

“Hey!” Leon growled at the guards, starting towards them. They where forcing his wife to stand with Theodore, roughly pulling Rachel. “Leave them alone!”

Hershel saw as someone quickly came up behind his father and laid a hand on his shoulder and his left arm. Hershel had wanted to say something to warn his father, but the man was so quick and seem to come from nowhere that Hershel had no time to speak. All Hershel could do was hang on, as some of the support Leon gave him went away as the man pulled his father's arm back.

“Mister Bronev, stop.” hissed a heavy Russian accent laden voice. “Do as I say. Please do not have me hurt you in front of family.”

Leon peered back to see the young man behind him. The way he grabbed him, Leon was sure he would twist his arm if he moved. He did not wish to accidentally drop Hershel, so he did as the man said and calmed down.

“That better.” the young man let go of Leon, then motioned for the Bronevs to follow him, the other guards staying behind in the cargo room.

As the Bronevs were forced to follow, Hershel observed the man that nearly hurt his father. He was a fairly young lad, hardly an adult. He didn't wear the Targent hat nor the glasses, showing off his light blonde hair and his bright green eyes, but he had the rest of the uniform. However it seemed to be tinted a darker shade of blue. In fact it was all dark colors, the buttons, belts, and boots that the rest of the Targent members had that would normally add a bit more brightness to the attire were gone, just black. The only addition he had were black gloves. He was shorter than Hershel's father and his thin figure didn't show he had much strength, except that his grab earlier proved otherwise.

If Hershel didn't know any better, he would think the young man appeared relatively harmless.

“Um...” Rachel raised her voice up a bit, trying to get the young man's attention, much to Leon's concern. “Excuse me...”

“Da?” the young Taregnt agent tilted his head back a bit to see Rachel, but refused to stop and expected them to continue following.

“I...I wanted to know if there was anyway we... We've been here for hours and the children are... I'm sure they are hungry and still very tired.”

The young agent of Targent stopped in his tracks spinning around to face them, causing the two adults to come to a halt. Rachel clutched her youngest boy close to her, worried she had said something wrong.

To their surprise, the young man lowered his gaze, looking embarrassed. “Mister Gearald would like me to...uhhh...” he paused, as if he was trying to recollect what he was told to say next. “... _'apologize sincerely on his behalf_ '.” He said that very stiffly, as though he didn't understand some of the words he was saying. His cheeks turned red, not sure if he got it right. “You were not to be left alone in cargo room. A... 'incident' kept Mister Gearald busy.” The man turned back forward and continued on.

“Ah...” Rachel smiled a little, feeling bad for the young man becoming flustered. “May I know your name?”

The young man pressed his lips together, as if in thought, but remained silent. Rachel wonder if he understood her question or just refused to answer.

They kept going for a bit before the young man stopped at a door and opened it, motioning for the family to stay where they were before he stepped inside. After a moment he came back.

“Inside.”

The Bronevs walk inside the room, the Targent member coming up behind them and closing the door.

Leon didn't know what he was expecting, but it wasn't a nice room with a table full of food in the center. There were chairs around the table as well as couches in the corners of the room.

The young Targent member stood by the door with his hands behind his back in full attention, guarding the closed door.

The Bronevs stood there, dumbfounded by the hospitality all of a sudden, unsure if they should eat anything. The boys made no sound, but they were staring at the food.

“It is safe.” spoke up the young guard, sensing their uneasiness. “No reason hurting you.”

Leon would have to agree with that. There would be no reason to kill them now with poison, it would be a waste. After all, if Targent did decide to get rid of them, they could just shoot them and dump them into the ocean. No one would know.

The unpleasant thought sent a shiver down Leon's spin.

“I suppose it would be all right...” whispered Rachel, giving her husband a quick glance to see if he agreed. Leon slowly nodded to her, setting down Hershel. There was no point in starving themselves when the possibility of it being deadly was low.

Rachel put Theodore on a seat, helping him get what he wanted to eat. Hershel came up to the table, tugging on his father's sleeve to come with him. He didn't wish to be too far from him.

The Bronevs sat quietly and ate, a small sense of calmness came over them. For once that day the stress had lowered, even with the Targent guard in there with them. He seemed to leave them alone, staying by the door at attention, his expression very cold and focused.

Leon could see his wife wanted to say something, but couldn't find the right words to start a conversation. Leon reached across the table and grabbed her hand, squeezing it. Rachel smiled sadly at Leon, seeing that he didn't know what to say either.

Theodore popped another small pastry in his mouth before he noticed something was gone. He had been so hungry that he missed that he had dropped his teddy bear. Theodore looked around quickly and spotted it nearby the door.

The little four year old wiggled his way off the tall seat, barley landing on his feet, which nearly made him lose his balance. Once steady, he went towards the toy.

Theodore came to complete stop when the Targent member knelt down, picking up the bear before the child could get there. Theodore had forgotten the young man was there and became scared, freezing in place.

“T-Theodore?” Leon had stood up by that point, having placed a hand on Hershel's shoulder to keep him from going to his brother's aid. Leon knew fully well how protective of his little brother the six year old was.

Rachel had noticed Theodore getting up and had moved to stop him, but was too late before the boy got out of arms reach. She stood a few feet away from her son, afraid of what would happen next.

The young Targent member studied the bear, his cold demeanor softening. He flashed a smile at Theodore and held the bear at arms reach for the boy.

“Your name?”

Theodore looked back at his mother, who slowly nodded at him. “It's okay.”

Theodore took the bear back, hugging it close. “Theodore...”

The young man nodded and ready himself to get back up.

“What's your name?”

The Targent member let out a loud sigh at the question, as if he felt like that was giving up too much information. He remained kneeling and took a quick look at Rachel before turning his attention back to Theodore. “...Pavel. Pavel Zotov.”

“Oh.” Theodore thought that name seemed hard to say or remember.

“I have little brother.” Pavel said, his tone becoming melancholy as if he were thinking of a another time in life. “Near your age.”

“Is he here too?” Theodore was becoming comfortable talking to Pavel. He didn't come across as scary as the other men, he wasn't as tall as most of them.

Pavel shook his head. “No. Back home. Far away from this.”

“How come?”

Pavel laughed. “You ask lot of questions.” Pavel's mood changed again, to one of great sadness. “He... too sick. Targent take care of him.” Pavel patted Theodore on the head before turning him around and shuffling him back to his mother.

“T-thank you.” whispered Rachel, glad to have her son close to her again. “I'm sorry about your brother.”

“Don't.” said Pavel coolly. “I do what I must for family. You...the same for yours.” Pavel's cold disposition returned as he turned to face Leon. “For your family. Do what Targent says.”

With that, Pavel went back to his position at the door and stood there as if nothing had happened.


	3. Chapter 3 - One Answer

_** That Fateful Day ** _

** Chapter 3 **

“ **One Answer”**

Rachel held Theodore in her lap, having sat down on one of the couches in the room. Theodore had gotten comfortable and was beginning to doze off again. The little boy rubbed his sleepy eyes and rolled himself to face his mother, snuggling up to her.

How many hours had gone by? The Bronevs had been moved and then left in the nice room for quite sometime. The only activity to happen was Targent men coming in the clean up the food when they were done.

Pavel stayed in his position, unmoving and refusing to response to any questions they had. He had made it clear he was done interacting with them, probably having already stepped out of line just talking to Theodore.

Last thing Pavel said to them was to wait, someone would come for them soon. After that he stopped replying, even refusing to say that much anymore.

Rachel didn't like the sound of that. They had been dragged around and threaten enough.

The silence in the room was getting unnerving, having nothing to do or say for the past few hours, other than sit and wait. Even if the adults wanted to talk about their predicament, there was a Targent member in the room with them. His English was questionable, however he could know more than he let on.

Despite Pavel being a part of the group of kidnappers, Rachel found herself feeling sorry for him. He came across as being in the same position as them in some ways, just doing what he had to for those he cared about.

Rachel found that she did believe him.

Hershel was beginning to get anxious, shifting around in his seat. Leon tried to convince him to take a nap like his little brother, but Hershel refused.

Everyone nearly jumped when there was a tap on the door, Pavel finally moving to open it.

“Pavel?”

Rachel didn't recognize the man standing outside the room. He looked very irritated to see Pavel there.

“What are you doing here?!”

Pavel narrowed his eyes at the man, not pleased with his attitude. “Mister Fin, Mister Gearald asked me, so I must...”

Fin groaned, pushing past the young Targent member. “I wish Father would stop using you as an errand boy. For God's sakes, you're his bodyguard! We have plenty of normal soldiers for menial tasks. I swear that man thinks he's immortal.”

Pavel rolled his eyes back as if he had heard this more than once. He went back to his guarding position, deciding it best to not engage.

Fin became aware of the Bronevs and coughed uncomfortably, embarrassed about his outburst.

“Excuse me, I apologize for that. It has been a long day. I am Fin Gearald and I believe you, Mister Bronev, have met my father already.”

Rachel looked over at Leon, who stood up. She didn't know who this man was and worried for her husband. It appeared Hershel was also worried, having grabbed his father's hand to stop him from heading over to Fin.

Leon turned to his son, forcing a small smile at him. “Stay here with your mother.” He slowly made Hershel release his grip before walking over to Fin.

Fin adjusted his cufflinks on his sleeves before turning his attention to Leon. “We are docking at the moment, Mister Bronev. I hope you had plenty of time to discuss everything with the family.”

Leon frowned at Fin. There wasn't anything to talk about, Leon and Rachel were fully aware of how little choice they had in this.

“Your work was also very impressive, according to... someone I trust.” Fin smiled. “Because of this, you and your family need to learn what your role will be here at Targent, once we confirm your answer. So if you all would come have a walk with me, we shall disembark and head straight towards The Nest, your new home.”

Fin turned to Pavel. “Come along. I'm sure Father would have you finish your errand.” Fin motioned for everyone to follow him, before walking out of the room.

Hershel stood up and ran to his dad, clutching his hand. Leon squeezed back and looked over at Rachel, who got up with Theodore. The little boy was very confused about everything and decided to keep quiet, hanging onto his mother.

The Bronevs followed Fin, Pavel coming up behind them, leading down the halls of the large ship. Surprisingly, it did not take them long before they were on their way off the ship, heading down onto a docking bay.

Several members of Targent were running around, moving crates off the ship and directing vehicles to carry the crates and the soldiers off to who knew where. They appeared to be in a hurry.

Having seen the sky for once in who knew how many hours, Rachel noticed how dark it was. The sun had set a long time ago, bright lights were all over the docking bay to give everyone visibility. Beyond that, Rachel couldn't tell what was out there. It looked so black and mysterious.

“I think my father has taken a shine to you, Mister Bronev.” Fin finally spoke up once they got on land. He continued to have them follow him, walking past all the busy Targent members, giving a nod to a few who acknowledged him.

“Normally we'd have you ride with the others, but Father would like to hear your answer himself.” Fin flashes them a smile. ”As well as meet your family proper.”

Rachel nearly gasped as a loud and windy sound started up, a huge gust of air blowing their way. More lights came on, revealing a huge airship in front of them, the lights coming from it.

“This should take us the rest of the way!” yelled Fin, trying to get his voice over the noise. He walked up to the open door on the ship, talking to one of the agents. It was impossible to make out what he was saying to the Targent member, but after he was done he signaled the Bronevs to come along.

Stepping inside, Rachel could see other members of Targent didn't quite look the same as the ones she saw before. Much like Pavel's uniform, the Targent agents here were dressed in a different shade of color, a dark red. There were only a few others inside that looked like the normal ones she had seen before.

The red ones were huddled around one of their own, who appeared to had been hurt, his arm in a sling and bandaged up. They were talking among themselves, reassuring their fellow red uniformed agent. At least it sounded like it.

“Hey, don't worry. I bet it'll leave a neat scar.”

“No one will see it, his arm will be covered up.”

“Come on, don't say that. He took one for the team.”

“He should just be thankful to be alive and that we were allowed to get him out.”

“Yeah... thanks for coming back for me.”

“No need, couldn't have Scotland Yard find you.”

“You survived your first day, kid. Not bad, eh?”

“Good to see you're up and about.” called Fin, causing the red uniformed men to stand at attention, the injured one nearly hurting himself in the process. “Don't over do it. You've earned some time off when we get back.”

“Yes, sir!” called the agents as Fin walked off with the Bronevs.

They were lead into a large room with huge windows. Rachel could only guess this is where they controlled the airship, not knowing much about them. Though it was very nicely put together, having two large couches in the middle of the room with a table in the center.

Sitting down was an old man with a young lady and a similar looking young man. Rachel looked over at Leon and could immediately tell he recognized them. She worried about Leon, wondering how well he was keeping it together. She could tell his anger was rising above his fear for these people, not that she could blame him.

“I've brought them, Father. “ spoke up Fin, getting everyone's attention.

“Ah, yes, bring them over.” the old man grinned at them.

Fin cleared his throat. “Yes, Misses Bronev, this is my father, Tomas Gearald. You've already met him, Mister Bronev. And these two are Ji and Jin, very well respected colleagues of mine.”

Gearald laughs. “Oh Fin, my good lad. Be a bit more truthful than that. We're here to try and build a better understanding, since our first meeting was so...stressful. We're meeting Mister Bronev's family, he should meet ours.”

Fin frowned. “Well, alright. If you insist. They are also my step-siblings.”

Ji rolled her eyes. “That is not the only reason for bringing them here. Jin wanted to ask Mister Bronev something about the artifact.”

Jin squirmed in his seat, looking away from everyone. “I-it can wait.”

“We'll get to that in a moment.” said Gearald. “Please, everyone have a seat.”

Reluctantly, the Bronevs took a seat in the couch across from Gearald. Fin sat down next to his father, Jin and Ji moving to allow him too.

Gearald looked over at the Bronevs, seeming to be getting a good look at the ones he hadn't seen yet. “What a lovely family you have, Mister Bronev.” Gearald leaned against his cane, giving Leon his full attention. “So, what is your decision?”

Leon took in a deep breath, trying to collect himself. “If... if I say yes to your proposal... Will you let my family go?”

Rachel grabbed Leon's hand. “Leon, are you sure?”

Leon looked at Rachel. “If I can get you and the boys far away from all this...”

Fin grimaced at this, glancing at Gearald. The old man nodded at Fin, allowing him to answer that.

“That would be impossible, I'm afraid.”

“What?” Leon was confused and feeling frantic by that answer.

“You see.” Fin closed his eyes for a moment, thinking over what he was about to say. When he opened them he continued. “I'm sure you were informed that you were never our target to begin with.”

Leon nodded to this.

“Of course. Professor Standwood was our real target. The evening we went to get him and his research, we hadn't realized he was prepared for us coming. One of our higher members informed him that this was his last chance.”

Ji's expression changed. She was clearly angry at whoever Fin was talking about. Jin looked over at her and whispered something, though Rachel couldn't make out what it was. It seemed to calm Ji down, her expression softening.

Fin continued. “When we got there he let us know right away he had no intention of coming. Not sure how the man acquired a gun with the heavy gun laws of London.”

“You were shot at?” asked Ji, who appeared to have not heard about this nor did she like what she was hearing.

Fin smirked. “No, not I. I told you, my dear. We have people for that... Anyway, at this point Standwood had become more trouble than he was worth.”

Rachel couldn't believe what she was hearing. How could they talk about someone's life like that? It was so casual, as if it had meant nothing to this young man.

“Little did we know, he had also contacted the authorities before we arrived.” Fin rubbed his temple, becoming irritated. “By the time we finished searching his office, we found he had hidden the most important artifact piece that we needed. With how everything transpired that night, my team had no choice but to leave everything as it were, minus the research. We took that with us, though I'm sure there's plenty we had no time to gather up. Sneaking out of a university without the police seeing us wasn't what I had expected to do that night.”

“However, doing so meant the police would find Professor Standwood was... Well we had hoped to make it look like a suicide, but as I said before, Standwood pushed us to be more direct. After we left, I suspected that Standwood hid the artifact with his partner in his research, which was you, Mister Bronev. I knew we had to find you quickly. London's finest would want to speak with you. In fact I wouldn't be surprised if they have already visited your home by now.”

“And there lies the problem.” said Gearald. “With how quickly we had to remove the artifact and the fact that we had wasted so much time on Standwood, there wasn't any time to try to bring you over more...peacefully.”

Fin nodded. “I'm sure once the police see you and your family missing they will jump to conclusions.”

Rachel froze. Were they suggesting that...

“If you aren't their main suspect,” Fin went on, ignoring the horrified looks of Leon and Rachel. “you will definitely be a suspect. Do you really want your family to live like that, Mister Bronev? Harassed by Scotland Yard for the rest of their lives? Your boys being told constantly that their missing father is a murderer? We certainly can't let any of you go now.”

Rachel squeezed her husband's hand, feeling him tremble with anger. These people had already scared, threaten, and hurt them. Now they were ruining their lives to force them to go along with whatever they wanted. They did it so calmly, so easily.

The boys had been quiet the whole time, Theodore not sure what was going on and letting himself get distracted by the airship itself, trying to keep his mind off of the fact that there were more of those scary guards. While Hershel had been giving the old man a nasty glare the whole time the adults had been talking.

Gearald had took note of that and smirked at the little boy. Hershel just tried to look angrier at him for that, which amused Gearald.

“So, you see where we're at.” said Fin, not paying any mind to the children. “We need to know where you stand, Mister Bronev.”

As if sensing the growing tension, Pavel had moved over to stand in between them, incase something were to happen.

Leon's anger only began to subside due to the fear of what could happen to his family. He looked at his wife and his sons, knowing what he had to do. There was only one answer.

“For my family's safety, I'll do whatever you want.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author: Thank you so much for reading this far and for leaving comments. If you wish to see art related to this, I post artwork on pages that are posted on my profile.
> 
> Also at this time I am looking for a beta reader, so if you're interested, please let me know.
> 
> Thank you again.


	4. Chapter 4 - Separation

_** That Fateful Day ** _

** Chapter 4 **

“ **Separation”**

“I believe this is yours? Pavel, if you would?”

Leon's eyes darted over at Pavel, who grabbed his hand and placed a pocket watch in it. Leon then looked over at Gearald, who smiled.

“I don't deem a watch dangerous, they really shouldn't have taken that from you.”

After Leon's answer, the room's atmosphere had changed. Every Targent member had relaxed, talking to Leon as if he had always been a part of their group.

If they were worried or just not in the mood to get rid of another person... Who knew what _**they**_ were nervous about before, that mood was gone.

“You wanted to ask Leon about the artifact, right Jin?”

Gearald had tried a bit of small talk, but it didn't seem to work, so now he switched the conversion to something Jin was eagerly waiting for.

Jin quickly stood up and walked behind the couch. He placed on some gloves and picks up a case, popping it open. It showed a small figurine inside, standing on a pedestal. The figure was a small woman wrapped in a long cloak with a wing design, the colors gold and a light blue with a greenish tint to it.

On the back of the cloak was an odd pattern that didn't seem to look right. In fact, even the front looked off, the pattern of the wings not matching at all. The whole center part of the figurine looked like a mishmash of design.

The pedestal appeared to have had some damage to it, long thin pieces from the bottom were laid out neatly in the case.

Leon recognized it as one of the artifacts that himself and Standwood found. The one Standwood sent him. Leon was sure he knew why they wanted that one in particular, he had already started to work out its purpose before he and his family were kidnapped.

Jin sat back down on the couch, careful to pull out the figurine. Leon noticed a change in Jin, the man he'd seem timid and unable to look at anyone, wasn't so anymore. He was sitting straight up, staring at the figurine for a moment before turning his gaze to Leon. Jin's eyes and smile widen, unnervingly.

“Isn’t it lovely, Mister Bronev?” Jin's tone had changed, while still quiet, it came off a lot more confident and focused. “Look how well kept it is, despite being underground. The Azran's structure is amazing, outlasting even them.”

“Looks broken to me.” said Fin, unimpressed. He had placed a cigar between his teeth, however he hadn't lit it.

Jin shot Fin a disappointed look. “O-ohh... Only if you refuse to pay attention.” He looks back at Leon, smiling again. “You understand what I mean, right? It's a puzzle. An Azran puzzle, isn't it?!” Jin giggled with excitement. “I want to see those ruins...”

Ji looked away from Jin, looking uncomfortable. She stood up and walked away from everyone, deciding to stand somewhere off to the side of the room.

“I assume it will be a while before we're allowed near the ruins, with a murder investigation going on.” Gearald shook his head, disappointed. “We'll have to hold off on that expedition for a while. I want Leon to be a part of it, having seen it firsthand.”

“What do you know about the artifact?” asked Fin, gesturing towards Leon to answer.

Leon took a deep breath. “I-I could show y-you if...” Jin stood up and walked over to Leon, handing him the case and a pair of gloves before Leon could even finish. The young man eagerly awaited Leon to explain what he knew of the Azran artifact.

Leon put the gloves on, then turned the figurine upside down, having the seemingly damaged part facing him. “These cuts are far too clean to be damage over time. As, um--”

“It's fine, Mister Bronev.” Jin said, a twinkle in his eye. “Call me Jin. Everyone does.”

“Uh, yes.” Leon cleared his throat. “As Jin said, everything the Azran built was made to last.” Leon looked over the figurine, slowly twisting the center of the figurine, a small clicking and popping noise coming from it, which made Fin flinch. He thought to take the artifact away from Leon until he realized what he was doing.

Small shift-able lines became clear around it, making it possible for Leon to line up the back design. It made the decorations begin to sync up correctly, the jumbled and misshapen art now becoming visible around the cloak, forming symbols.

“My my.” Jin peered closer at Leon, studying what he was doing. “I didn't even noticed.”

“I only became aware of it through the rushed shipping job done by Haris...” Leon frowned, now fully aware of the reasons why. He decided not to think about it and continued on. “It seemed different than I last remember seeing the figurine, and I noticed that I could twist the center piece. It took a while to figure out the correct pattern, as there are several different parts I can move... Also if I do it too much...”

Leon stopped and the figurine made a load clicking sound, snapping all the pieces back to how it was before, causing Leon to start over.

“So I was right, it is a puzzle.” Jin said happily.

“Yes, but what does it do?” Fin asked, still doubtful.

“It's part of the Azran!” Said Jin, insulted by Fin's attitude. “I'm sure it's a key to the ruins!”

“Right, Jin.” Fin laughed. “No need to get worked up. You're like a kid with a new toy.”

“I-I...Uhh...”

“Come now you two.” Gearald waved his cane in between them both. “We're all here to work together. Get along.”

Leon finished, a small humming sound came from the figurine, much to the confusing of everyone. Leon then picked up one of the thin 'broken' pieces and placed it near the bottom of the figurine. As he did so, there was a small flash as a light bounced between the two, causing the Targent members to jump.

“Ah!” Jin clasped his hands together. “Another artifact showing signs of a brand new energy source!”

“Now you have my attention.” Fin pressed his lips together on his cigar in thought, though he was now watching Leon closely.

Leon shows them all that the thin piece was now attached to the figurine. “I also believe it is a key. Haris and I found a door with no lock and no way to open it. There was a hole that this might fit into, however we never got the chance to try it.”

“Impressive.” Fin grinned at Leon. “So you figured out the entire puzzle on your own?”

Leon shook his head. He pulled out two of the thin pieces and switched their position. They snapped in place on the figurine just as easily as before. “The combinations I can make on this are quite a few. I would need to study more of the ruins and the door itself. An answer might be there...” He clicks the figurine's center again, causing it to reset and the humming stopping. The thin pieces fell onto Leon's lap, all detaching now that whatever force was holding them in place had stopped.

“Leon, why did you go and do that?” Fin was annoyed, now Leon would have to do it all over again.

Leon's gaze never left the figurine. He didn't like how casual they were all being towards him, nor did he like them calling him by his first name now. He was not their friend. They were not even friendly.

Nonetheless, he could not express this if he wanted his loved ones safe. Rachel an the boys weren't too far away. They had been moved out of the room, taken somewhere they could get some real sleep, Leon being left with the leader of Targent to...talk.

“I'm not sure if it's a good idea to keep it on.”

“Mister Bronev is probably right.” Jin took the figurine from Leon and put it back in the case, along with the thin pieces. “We still don't fully understand how the technology of the Azran work. You are going to have to show our engineers how to solve the puzzle after we're done with the ruins.”

“That sounds like a good idea.” said Gearald, his attention shifting to Jin. “You know, Jin, since Corrin is probably going to be... taking a holiday, why don't you show Leon how we work at Targent?”

“Eh?” Jin blinked, coming out of whatever it was that had filled him with confidence. His shoulders slumped and he stared at the floor. “U-uh, um...What do you mean?”

“Would you like Leon to work with you for a while?”

“I think that would be a good idea.” said Ji, rejoining everyone. “It would be good for you to work with someone other than Corrin for a while.”

“I-I suppose.”

“That's enough for now.” Gearald gestured to Leon. “Jin, show Leon where his family was moved. Get to know each other, you might be working together for a while. I'll send someone to get Leon when we land.”

Jin nods slowly to Gearald before heading towards the door. He looks at Leon to make sure he was following before heading out.

Nothing was said as Leon followed Jin, though that didn't surprise him. Jin didn't come off as the talkative type, at least when he was like this. What that personality change earlier was, Leon could only assume what that could have been, possibly related to the Azran. Jin seemed obsessed with them.

Most Targent members ignored them, only moving aside if they were in Jin's way. In fact, Leon took note that they all appeared to be avoiding Jin as much as they possibly could.

The man came off as weird, however he wasn't that strange. Was there something Leon didn't know?

Jin stopped at a door with two guards in front of it. Leon was relieved that Jin was just taking him to the room his loved ones were and not delaying on that.

Jin turned to the guards. “You both, I want you to leave for, say, ten minutes? I don't care what you do, take a walk, eat something, talk about the weather. Just leave. Can you do that?”

Leon heard the tone change from Jin, much more commanding. The guards uneasily walked off, barely getting out a 'yes, sir'.

Jin stood in front of door and smiled at Leon. “Let's talk, Mr. Bronev.”

Leon became agitated, Jin keeping him from his family by just a door. The problem was, Leon didn't think he was in any position to argue with the Targent Member.

“No one is around now.” Jin said as soon as the guards were fully gone from view. He adjusted his glasses and straighten his posture out. “I just wish to speak with you in private before I return you to your wife and children. Just for a moment, don't get so...upset. We will be working together from now on, after all.”

“Why?” Leon found himself replying before he could think about it. He was _**upset**_. Jin wasn't helping with that feeling. He wasn't sure what Jin wanted with him and it couldn't be good considering that Jin wanted to do this away from the leaders of Targent.

“Why?...” Jin mused over the question as if it never occurred to him. “Why indeed... Hm. Am I that desperate that I'm looking to a third rate archaeologist living in the country side of England for the answer to my dilemma? Has it truly gotten this bad?”

Leon frowned at Jin.

“Oh come now, Mister Bronev.” Jin chuckled at how insulted Leon was. This amused him greatly. “Surely you don't think I approved of you because of your work. You were a nobody for a reason.”

Leon decided to say nothing in response this time.

“Not curious as to what I mean?” Jin pushed off the door, though kept a hand on it, as if to continue denying Leon a chance to leave. “Hmph. Well, my original assumption of you being such a... _push over_ was correct. Fine then. I'll tell you anyway. And will get to the point.”

Jin tapped the rim of his glasses, unable to stop fiddling with them. “Why I decided not to have you and your family shot and thrown away like a bad idea was because you have something Targent is sorely lacking these days. We have plenty of good archaeologists. We could use a few more of course, but what we truly lack is people with a good eye for puzzles. I wanted to test you on how far you got with the artifact. You went much further than I was expecting, which is why I have decided to keep you.”

Leon didn't like what he was hearing. Jin proved to be as flippant about people's lives like the rest of the heads of Targent. At least to those who were not in their organization.

“I want you on my team.” Jin continued. “See, Mister Gearald may have said this was temporary, however I can make you a permanent member of my personal team. I hand picked them myself. You just have to not resist my request to keep you on.”

Jin then frowned. “Problem is you'll have to work with Corrin, our ever so _**wonderful**_ second in command. It is a small price to pay for the work, my team gets the best archaeological sites. Also, having you around will mean I'll get to look at the ruins you and Standwood found.”

Leon crossed his arms, getting fed up with this man deciding his whole life. “What if I refuse?”

Jin chuckled. “You won't. With a word I could have you and your family removed. After all, you aren't _true_ members of Targent yet and I was the one that recommended you. I have full control over what happens. It would be very eas--”

Jin didn't get to finish, Leon having walked up and grabbed him by the collar of his uniform, slamming him against the door. Leon had enough of these **people** threatening his family, mocking them, controlling their lives. The whole night, the whole day was filled with nothing but terror and helplessness.

With Jin all by himself, Leon found himself for once feeling like he could do something. He wanted so badly for these people to suffer.

“So you do have a backbone.” Jin smirked, unfazed by the attack. “Suddenly have courage when I'm alone? I wouldn't, you are trapped on an airship. Where do you think you'll be going if you do anything to me?”

Leon grimaced, realizing what he was doing. Jin was right, this would do nothing other than make everything worse. His grip loosened on Jin, who pushed his hand away.

“I'll let that one slide.” Jin adjusted his collar. “It's been one long and hard day for you. I'm not completely heartless, Mister Bronev. I do care about Targent. If you survive long enough to truly become part of us and if you live up to my exceptions, we may become colleagues.”

Leon clenched his hands into fists, trying to keep his temper in check.

“Now that we have an understanding.” Jin walked away from the door, heading back down the hall they originally came from. “You can go. I will see you later when we land, Mister Bronev. I hope you make the right decision.”

Leon watched Jin walk away before he slowly opened the door and went inside, quietly shutting it behind him.

“Leon?”

At the end of the room sat Rachel, looking very concerned for Leon. Did she hear what was said outside?

The inside of the room was small and looked as if it was a sleeping area for Targent agents, a few beds lining the walls, mounted onto them. There wasn't much to the room, looking very plain. Not that it mattered to the two young boys who were asleep, not even the sound of the airship's engine keeping them awake.

Rachel stood up and rushed over to Leon, wrapping her arms around him. Leon slowly hugged his wife tightly, unable to think of doing anything else.

“I'm so sorry, Rach--”

“Please, Leon.” Rachel cut Leon off. “I told you before, do not blame yourself. This is not your fault.”

“I know...” Leon rested his head against Rachel's, his anger from before had all but left him, leaving him drained. “I wish I could have sent you and the boys home.”

“You tried. That's all we can ask of you.” Rachel's voice was quiet and Leon could tell it was shaking a little. She was trying to hide it, but she was terrified. Despite this, she laughed a little. “Besides, we would worry about you all the time if we were sent home.”

Rachel's breathing became heavy again, much to Leon's concern. The stress of the situation was probably getting to her, it seemed to be really affecting Rachel's health.

“Are you alright?”

Rachel nodded. “I'll be fine. Just... I just need a moment.”

“If you're sure.” Leon's gaze went to his children, his heart sinking. “How are we going to raise them?”

“We'll just have to do our best.” Rachel took Leon's hand in her's. “We're together, that's all that matters.”

Leon closed his eyes and said nothing more. The two just held each other, unsure of the future before them. While it was awful that his family was in this with him, Leon found he truly needed Rachel at this moment. He didn't know what he would do facing this alone, uncertain of the well being of his wife and children.

At the same time, a dreadful feeling sank into the pit of Leon's stomach, his anxiety building. He wasn't sure why, but he felt like the worst was about to come once they landed.

What else could Targent do to them that they hadn't already?

That only grew worse once he felt the airship shake, nearly knocking him and Rachel over and waking the two boys up. Leon helped Rachel balance herself before they both went over to Hershel and Theodore, Rachel picking the youngest up.

It wasn't long before the door swung open, Targent guards standing outside. The Bronevs were escorted out, being lead outside of the airship to a hanger area.

It became more and more clear how organized Targent was.

“Well it's time to show you all to your new living quarters.”

Leon looked to see Fin, Ji, Jin, Pavel, and Gearald coming up to them, several guards along side them. The grim feeling Leon had grew worse as they closed around them.

“Jin here will show you where you'll be working.” Fin waved his hand towards Jin, who had gone back to his meek persona. “Some of our men here will show Misses Bronev where you'll be staying. And these two here will be taking the children to the learning facilities.”

“Excuse me?” Leon barely got the words out before he found himself placing a hand on Hershel's shoulder to move the boy behind him. He looked at Rachel, who was holding Theodore even tighter, a look of horror on her face.

Fin appeared bothered, but it wasn't about what he was telling them. “I'm sorry, we really should have been more clear about the arrangements. We were all caught up by the events of the day and what you showed about the Azran artifact, we forgot all about discussing it.”

“Don't be so distressed.” Ji smiled at Leon as if this was all normal. “Think of it like the boarding schools in England. It's not as if you will never see them again. You will have visiting hours and time off to see them with the proper permission forms filed.”

“Please... Don't do this.” Rachel barely got out, her eyes filling with tears rather quickly.

Leon found he couldn't speak. He couldn't even think. The idea of these people taking his children away was too terrible. What was worst was he knew he couldn't stop them.

“Let's not make this more difficult than it has to be.” said Fin plainly, not showing any signs of backing down. “This is for the best.”

“Please.” cried Rachel, holding her son as close as she could as the guards moved in on them.

“C-can we have one moment with them?” Leon finally found himself saying, trying anything to stall. He could see Fin wasn't happy with this idea. “Just give us some time, please...”

Fin let out a huge sign and motioned for the guards to back off. He turned around and walked off. “You have five minutes.”

Leon nodded and knelt down to Hershel's height, placing his hands on the small boy's shoulders. Hershel frowned at his father before looking at Fin with a scowl. Leon knew right away that Hershel definitely understood what was about to happen.

“Hershel, look at me.”

Hershel's eyes darted back to his father, though he still looked angry.

“I need you to listen to me.” Leon glanced over to see if the guards were watching them closely. For the most part they didn't seem to be paying too much attention, the situation making them uncomfortable.

“Dad...”

Leon looked Hershel in the eyes. “Hershel, remember what I told you before?”

Hershel nodded. “Yes. We're suppose to stick together.”

“I know.” Leon frowned. “I'm going to need you to do that for me. For your brother.”

Hershel's shoulders sank. “But...”

“I know, I know.” Leon tried to hide his frustration, but could tell it was coming through. “I'm asking a lot from you today. I'm sorry it has to be this way. Your Mother and I will do everything we can to get to you and Theodore. But right now, you both need to listen to these... people.”

“Right...” Hershel's breathing shorten. Much to Leon's dismay, he could see his son was getting very distressed.

Leon dug into his pocket and pulled out the pocket watch, placing it in Hershel’s hand quickly, hoping the guards didn't see it. “Be brave. I will make this right one day.”

Hershel clasped the watch and nodded before his father sent him over to his mother, Leon taking Theodore aside. The little boy looked very confused and scared.

Leon hugged Theodore tightly. “I need you to go with these people.”

Theodore gripped onto his father. “Do I have to?”

“Yes. You do.” Leon patted Theodore's back. “Just for a while. Your Mother and I will get you as soon as possible. Until then, listen to your older brother, okay? Be good.”

Theodore nodded slowly. “Okay...”

“We can't do this...”

Leon looked to see Rachel sobbing.

“Rachel... We don't have a choice.” Leon hated how that sounded, but it was the truth.

“Don't cry, Mum.” Hershel placed his small hand on Rachel's face, which Rachel quickly grasped. “Theodore and I will be fine.”

“That's enough.” called out Fin, coming back over to them. “It's time.”

Leon slowly let go of Theodore, even if every part of of him wanted nothing more than to shield them from being taken away. He knew that was impossible and it pained him to see them and his wife have to go through this.

Hershel quickly made his way over to Theodore, grabbing his free hand and pulling him to stand a bit behind him. The guards moved over to them, the two shaking in fear.

“Mister Gearald, may I ask... request?”

“Yes?”

Leon looked over to see Pavel speaking with Gearald.

“They are scared. I take them? One guard over many more might calm them.”

Gearald laughed quite loudly at this. “You have such a soft spot for children. Of course you can, Pavel my boy.”

“Father, really.” Fin rub his temples, annoyed.

“Oh quiet.” Gearald waved his hand at Fin in dismissal. “We're back home, what do I need my bodyguard around for now? He can do what he wants. Come Ji, we've got a lot of paper work to do.”

Gearald left with Ji without another word on the matter.

Pavel made his way to the two boys and smiled at them. “Come with me.”

Theodore felt a little better that the taller and scary men were backing off, however he was still feeling bad about leaving with a stranger. Hershel eyed Pavel, not showing any signs of easing up like his little brother.

Pavel placed a hand on Theodore's and Hershel's shoulders and ushered them away from everyone, disappearing down the hanger. Leon wondered if...

No, he couldn't think like that. He would see them again. He would make it happen.

“We should get going as well, Mister Bronev.”

Leon clenched his teeth, holding himself back from saying something vile to Jin. He took a deep breath and turned to reply, but stopped himself short when he heard a _**'thud'**_ noise.

“H-hey!”

“Someone get a doctor here!”

Leon's heart stopped. Rachel had collapsed to the floor, her body in a crumpled heap. Targent guards moved quickly and gathered around her to see what had happened.

“Ra...Rachel?” Leon moved to go to his wife, but found himself stopped by two guards. They grabbed him by his arms and pulled him away. “Rachel!”

“You heard the man.” Said Fin calmly and coolly to one of the guards, unfazed by anything going on. He finally got a lighter out and lite the cigar he had in his mouth. “Inform the doctors they'll have a new patient. It's going to be another one of those days...”

“Well...” Jin came off surprised by it all, though his eye was mostly on Leon's reaction. “This really hasn't been your day.”

“Let me go!” screamed Leon. “I have to--”

“Have to what?” Jin stepped in front of Leon, blocking his view of Rachel. “We have doctors here, Mister Bronev. They will take care of her. You on the other hand have a job to do, remember?”

“You...” Leon struggled to get loose, but the guards were much stronger than him. It didn't take him long to tire himself out. Though he wanted nothing more than to get to Rachel, he knew it was hopeless.

Leon could see from behind Jin that the Targent guards had picked Rachel up and were taking her away, Fin going with them. Leon at that point slumped over in defeat.

“You done? Good. Let us go then.” Jin started off down the hall in another direction, the Targent guards that had Leon dragged the broken man with them.

Leon cursed under his breath. He would make them pay for this. He wasn't sure when or how.

One day he would make Targent pay.


	5. Chapter 5 - An Ally

_** That Fateful Day ** _

** Chapter 5 **

** “An Ally” **

The whole facility was cold and quiet. The sound of soft foots steps only made the place come off as eerie and large, not a single soul seeming to be around.

Theodore's grip on Hershel's hand tighten, completely confused as what was happening. All he knew was he was following Pavel, a man he wasn't sure if it was even okay to talk to him. But his brother was also going with him, so...maybe it was okay?

Nothing about today made much sense to the four year old.

Pavel took them into a plain looking room, a few doors in front of them. Pavel walked up to one of the doors and lightly knocked on it. The door creaked open, a woman peeking out from the other side.

“Ah, good. You are here.” said Pavel, smiling at the woman.

The woman looked around in her early thirties, thick glasses on her face and her blonde hair tied up in a bun on her head. She wore the usual Targent uniform, though her shirt was changed up to look more like a jacket and underneath was a light blue shirt. She also replaced the pants with a long skirt and wore notable make up.

The woman tipped her glasses down, as if she wasn't sure who was there at first. Once she saw Pavel her eyes lite up and she had a big grin on her face. “Ooooohhhh. Hello there, Sugar. Haven't seen you around in a while. Had time to break away from the Big Boss to come see little ole me?”

The woman winked at Pavel, who chuckled back at her.

“Business, Miss Gray. Business.” Pavel pointed behind him at the children who were just out of her point of view. Gray opened the door further and looked at the children. Theodore quickly hid behind Hershel, shrinking back as far as he could go.

“They are so cute! So we've got some new young'uns. Where are they from?”

“England.”

Gray cooed. “Aww, English boys. They have the accents too? Just love it. Oh, where's my manners.” Gray regained her composure. The woman spoke so quickly and energetically despite how late it was. “So we need to make records for these two... Right, are their parents here?”

Pavel nods.

“I see... That will make this much easier.” Gray tapped her pen against her chin. “Well, since it's late we can skip all the paper work for now. I really should have left the office by now. Just tell me their names and I'll make some time to get that all done in the mornin'. I'll also schedule a physical for them. For now we should get them to their new rooms.”

Pavel raised an eye brow at Gray who sighed in response.

“Sorry dear, forgot the limited English you know. Shouldn't ramble with you. Just tell me their names and what you can. I'll take care of everything.”

While Pavel was talking with Gray, Theodore tugged Hershel's hand, trying to get his attention. Hershel was trying to listen to the conversion of the two adults, hoping to get as much information as possible. However Theodore was now pestering him, making that difficult. Though ignoring him didn't work, the little boy just tugged harder.

“What?” Hershel look back at Theodore, the boy sinking back when he saw how mad his older brother looked. Hershel noticed this and changed his expression to a much calmer one. Last thing he wanted was his little brother afraid of him as well.

“Umm... Where are we going?”

“I don't know.”

Theodore frowned at the answer. “Oh... You... think Mum and Dad are okay?”

“They...” Hershel eyed Pavel, wondering if he was listening to them at all. He looked back at Theodore. “Probably.”

“Mum was crying a lot...”

“I know.” Hershel wasn't sure what to tell Theodore. He didn't know what was about to happen to them.

“Can you take them to their new room?” asked Gray to Pavel. “No one is here and I have to finish this paper work... The only ones left here can't, they have to keep to their patrols.”

“I will. Not worry.” Pavel waved to Gray before he walked off, lightly pushing the children along to follow him. They went through another door, leading down a long hallway, several other doors along it.

It didn't take long before Pavel stopped at a door and opened it, motioning for the two to go inside. The room was very bare, only two beds and a dresser drawer.

“This is your room.” Pavel walked over to Hershel and Theodore and knelt down to their level. “Just do as your told. You be fine.”

Hershel glared at Pavel, not believing for a moment that this Targent member cared what happened to them. However, Theodore came out from behind him and went up to Pavel.

“Will Mum and Dad come?”

Pavel smiled sadly at Theodore. “It might be... a while.”

Theodore stared at the ground, becoming very upset. “Oh...”

Pavel patted Theodore's head. “Don't worry. They will see you soon.”

Theodore kept his gaze to the ground.

“Well, Theodore, if they can't make it in while, maybe I can... take message from them. Okay? 

“Really?”

“Don't make fake promises.” Hershel said bitterly, having come up to Theodore and grabbed his arm, pulling the boy back behind him. “If your done, just go.”

Pavel looked at Hershel, a more blank and detached expression on his face. “You good brother. Not many you can trust here. Advice, take care of self and little brother, but do as told. Not cause problems for self. Survive first, deal with bruised pride later.”

With that, Pavel stood up and walked out of the door, closing it behind him. “Take care.”

“Hershel, that hurts.”

Hershel let go of Theodore's arm, not realizing how hard he was squeezing it. In fact he just noticed he was shaking now, terrified. He wasn't sure how he was holding it together, wanting nothing more than to break down into tears. He refused too, as before he did not want any of these Targent members to see him weak. That and he had to be strong for his little brother.

Hershel then got angry. He didn't like how easily Theodore talked to a man who was apart of those who had caused all this misery. At the same time he was sure Theodore hadn't a clue how dangerous Pavel really was.

“You need to be more careful.” Hershel wanted to keep his voice from sounding too harsh, but it probably did anyway. “We can't trust anyone here.”

Theodore hugged his teddy tightly, as if he was trying to hide beyond it. He began shaking as well. “He was nice.”

“He's a liar.” shot back Hershel, getting frustrated.

Tears quickly welled up in Theodore’s eyes. “I wanna go home...”

Hershel sighed and pulled his brother closer, hugging him. He couldn't think of anything else he could do to help his little brother when he couldn't even help himself. “Me too.”

“Excusez-moi?”

Hershel and Theodore quickly looked towards the door, seeing it creak open. A small head peeked through, barely making themselves viable. It was a young boy, only a little taller than Hershel. He slowly made his way into the room, as if not to scare the two Bronev boys.

“Bon soir.” The boy waved at them and smiled. His light and higher voice held a very thick French accent. His brunette colored hair was very messy and covering parts of his face, making it difficult to see his small blue eyes. His most stand out feature was his ears that stuck out of all the mess. He was dressed in some plain looking dull blue colored pajamas.

“Who's there?” Hershel scowled at the boy, even if he was around their age, Hershel trusted no one in this place.

“English?” The young boy tilted his head to the side, thinking over this new information before speaking again. “Well... Good evening or morning, not sure which one. You're new here, yes?”

Hershel glanced at Theodore, who was just staring at the new boy, not moving an inch away from his older brother. Hershel looked back at the boy, not sure what to make of him yet.

“Don't be scared. We're all prisoners here.” The boy came all the way into the room and shut the door behind him. “We must also be quiet. Guards may come down the halls and we're suppose to be asleep. By the way, the name is Julien Brun. What's yours?”

Hershel eyed the boy suspiciously, but saw no harm in telling his name. It's not as if Targent didn't already know. “Hershel Bronev. This is my brother, Theodore.”

Theodore meekly waved to the boy before gripping back onto Hershel.

“Oh.” Julien walked up to the boys.

“What do you want?” demanded Hershel, which stopped Julien from advancing any further.

“Well, you are new. You don't know how this place works. I thought I'd help you out.” Julien's eyes darted to Theodore for a second. “You both will need to know, since your little brother and you won't see each other most of the day.”

“What?”

“Well...” Julien frowned. “Different learning levels, different teachers. All depends.” Julien noticed the pocket-watch in Hershel's hand and pointed at it. “ **THAT** will be taken away. Once they do a random search on you and your room, that will be gone.”

Hershel looked at the watch and then back at Julien. “It's just a watch.”

“Yeah. That's why they'll take it.” Julien shrugged. “No calenders or clocks allowed.”

Hershel frowned at this information. His father gave him the watch for a reason and to lose it so fast...

“Is it important?”

Hershel found himself nodding to the answer, staring at the watch.

“Fine then...” Julien walked up to Theodore and knelt down. “Hey, what's his name?” Julien pointed to the teddy bear.

Theodore bit his lower lip. “Um... Teddy.”

Julien held his hand out. “Can I borrow him?”

Theodore held the teddy bear closer. “Uhhh...”

Julien grinned at the little boy. “I want to give Teddy the power to hide things from bad men. So your brother doesn't lose something important.”

Thedore loosened his grip when he heard that, looking over at Hershel. Theodore wanted his approval, but Hershel was lost in his own thoughts, not having paid any attention. Theodore slowly held out the bear to Julien who took it and then took Theodore by the hand, leading him to the door.

“Come. I'll show you. You coming, Hershel?”

Hershel snapped out of his thoughts and glared at Julien. “What are you doing?”

Julien ignored Hershel and opened the door and walked out with Theodore. He put his finger to his mouth to signal Theodore to be quiet and walked off with him, Hershel following behind, very annoyed.

Only a few doors down they ended up in what the boys assumed was Julien's room. It wasn't much different than there's, the only thing Theodore saw that stood out was a bunny sitting on the dresser next to a few books. Also Theodore saw the second bed was unoccupied.

Julien picked up the bunny on his dresser. “You see, Theodore, mine hides items for me.” He flipped the bunny over on it's stomach and stuck his hand in the back of the doll, a barely visible hole actually being there. He pulls out a needle, thread, and some cloth before putting the bunny back on the dresser.

Julien sat down on the floor and and patted the ground in front of him. “Sit with me, Theodore.”

Theodore sat down with no concern, while Hershel kept his glare at Julien. Hershel decided not to say anything yet, wanting to see what Julien was doing.

“Guards may do random searches...” Julien started pulling some of the thread out from the back of the teddy bear. Theodore's eyes widen at this, becoming worried. Julien smiled at Theodore to reassure him. “...but they look in the same places. At least as long as I've been here.”

“How long have you been here?” asked Hershel, watching Julien put some fabric inside the teddy bear and start to sew it up.

“Hmm... maybe four months?”

“ _Maybe_?”

“With no way to tell time, I don't know.” Julien winced, pricking himself. “I've been the new kid around here for a while. Ah, sorry if this isn't the best job. I'll have Mama make it better. But you need something real quick.”

“Why are you helping us?” Hershel didn't believe this kid was helping them out of kindness.

“Well... I haven't talked to anyone my age in a while... and here you go!” Julien handed the bear back to Theodore. “Just put your watch in there, should hide it for now. Can't promise how long that will work.”

Hershel looked at Theodore, who was reaching his hand out to him for the watch. Hershel reluctantly handed to him and the little boy stuffed it into the bear. Theodore hugged the bear tightly and smiled at Hershel, which made Hershel feel less tense about the whole situation. It felt like forever since Theodore smiled.

“This place is a... how you say...” Julien paused. “Is a 'Dog eat dog world'. The benefits of turning in rule breakers are tempting. Because of that making friends you can trust to not … 'rat you out' isn't easy.” Julien shrugged. “For me it's impossible.”

“Why?...” asked Hershel, deciding now to give Julien a chance.

Julien looked uncomfortable about the question. “My Mama... She's one of the teachers here. Everyone thinks that I will tell on them to her. It doesn't matter that she and I were kidnapped like most of the others here or that I think the rewards for telling aren't worth it. So they stay away from me.”

Hershel could see the reasoning behind that, though childish. Not that one could be too careful in their predicament.

“So...” Julien cleaned up what was left of his sewing items and placed them back in their hiding spot. “I was hoping we could at least get along. Better than turning on each other.”

Hershel wasn't sure. He just met this kid, who was very eager to get on his and Theodore's good side. However, if what he said was true, that would be because he had been isolated from everyone else for months.

“We'll be your friend!” said Theodore, quickly standing up and looking up at his brother. “Right, Hershel?”

Hershel sighed, of course Theodore wouldn't see a problem with being friends with someone they just met in this _**place**_. Though thinking about it, having someone who knew more about Targent would help them. It might be worth the risk... He might not get another chance like this.

“Fine.”

Julien seemed surprised by the answer. “Pardon?”

“We can be...” Hershel smiled at Theodore. “Allies.”

Julien snorted, amused at the way Hershel put it. “I'll take it. We better get to bed now. They might check on us soon. Good luck tomorrow, first day is a rough one.”

Hershel took Theodore by the hand and lead him to the door. The little boy waved to Julien with the arm holding his teddy bear, who waved back at him.

The two Bronev boys began to make their way back to their room, not being too far away from their own.

“He was nice.” said Theodore, feeling better and forgetting for that moment how scary everything had been. Hershel, though committed to this alliance now, was still worried.

“I hope you're right...”

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author Notes: Thank you everyone for the comments. They are appreciated. I will try to update when I can.
> 
> As I said before, if you want to see art related to the fanfic(which I plan to do more of that later) check out the links on my profile page.
> 
> Thank you for reading.


	6. Chapter 6 - Saying Goodbye

_** That Fateful Day ** _

** Chapter 6 **

“ **Saying Goodbye”**

“Slow down, Bronev.”

Leon ignored Jin as he quickly made his way down to the infirmary, Jin trying to keep up with him.

“Going any faster won't change the fact that I have to be there.” grumbled Jin. “They won't let you in since you don't have permission.”

Leon knew this, but felt he had to hurry anyway. He was just informed when he returned to 'The Nest', that there was a decline in Rachel's health. For a year she had suffered bad health in this cold and heartless place and Leon did everything he could to see her as much as possible, while also juggling seeing the boys.

Leon didn't even give himself time to change back into his Targent uniform, Jin and himself still in their civilian disguises.

“Bronev!”

Leon finally stopped and turn to see Jin trying to catch up. Recently Jin had stopped being as formal with him, though Leon wasn't sure why for the sudden change. Only Jin knew. Leon also wasn't sure if that was a good sign or not, but Jin's usual condescending attitude towards him and his team was waning. At least towards Leon it was.

However that was replaced with Jin acting as though he was expecting something from Leon all the time. What that was, Leon hadn't a clue, but it seemed Jin was being patient about it.

“Really, Bronev.” Jin sighed in annoyance, tapping the rim of his glasses. “At least pretend to be grateful. I am doing you a favor after all.”

“I didn't ask you.” mumbled Leon.

Leon knew Jin was right, he won't get much further in without him. Leon didn't think about that when he started for the infirmary and he wasn't sure why Jin decided to follow him and help him out. Jin wasn't a generous man, he always wanted something in return for any 'favors'. Never right away, he would save up on them and spring them on people when it was convenient for him.

Jin shrugged and walked past Leon. “Of course, of course. We have a lot of work to do that's being held up because you can't wait.”

Leon didn't feel any less anxious, but decided to slow down anyway to keep to Jin's pace. Dispute slowing down, it didn't take them long to get by any security.

“M-Mister Fin?”

Leon found he hadn't been paying much attention. He looked to see Fin and Pavel in the hallway, standing outside of Rachel's room. Fin was talking to one of the doctors.

_ Why is he here? _

Fin looked over at Leon and Jin, surprised to see them as well. “My, that was fast. I just sent someone to get Leon seconds ago.”

“R-really?” Jin titled his head to the side, becoming his timid self. Leon always wondered if this version of Jin was an act or that he couldn't help himself when Fin or Gearald were around. Especially Fin.

The man crumbled in front of them and Leon wasn't sure if it was fear or an unrealistic sense of admiration. “We came because of the message left for Bronev when we came back. D-did something happen?”

Leon's anxiety grew worse. The news he got earlier sounded bad, but now it could be worse than he thought.

Fin frowned at the two. “Well...” He looked at the doctor. “You can go. We'll call when it's...time.”

Leon felt cold, as if the blood rushed out of his head. “...What? What is happening?”

Fin placed a hand on his chin in thought. “I'm sorry. We tried everything we can to help her, however it seems our efforts were in vain. She does not have much time left.”

Leon felt his knees weaken. He wanted to collapse. This couldn't be real, what he was hearing.

“Normally I wouldn't do this, but I allowed your children to see her.” Fin went on without an answer from Leon. “We don't like to break up the … conditions we set them in, though I felt this was a exception. They are here right now and they don't know, so please try to keep your composure.”

Leon barely heard a word Fin said. He found himself walking to Rachel's room, placing a hand on the handle. Jin started saying something to Fin, but Leon couldn't hear them anymore. His ears were pounding so hard it was difficult to think. His hand was shaking, making it hard to open the door, only opening it a little.

“...Don't be angry, Hershel. Don't blame him for any of this.”

Leon stopped when he heard Rachel speak.

“Mum...”

“Your father is trying so hard. Please understand. Promise me you won't be angry with him, okay?”

“I... I promise.”

Leon tensed up before he opened the door all the way. The room was small, not much of a hospital room, mostly due to having been changed to more of a living quarters, Rachel having spent the last year in this room. Still was quite bare, having nothing personal on them when they were brought to into Targent.

“Dad!” Five year old Theodore slid off his seat and rushed over to his father, grabbing his hand. “Where were you?”

Leon sadly smiled at Theodore and lightly squeezed his hand. “Sorry, I came as soon as I could.” 

Theodore nodded, satisfied with that answer. He tugged on Leon, taking him over to Rachel's bed. Leon took a seat on the other side of the bed and Theodore sat back down in his seat.

“Leon...” Rachel smiled at Leon as best she could. He could see how hard it was for her to speak or to even keep her eyes open.

Leon glanced at Hershel, who was looking at his mother. Leon wondered if Hershel was already aware of what was going to happen. Hershel also seemed to be avoiding making eye contact with Leon.

“I'm glad we're all together...” whispered Rachel, trying to reach her hand out to grab Leon's, who quickly took it up when he noticed.

“They... told me how you were.”

“How is Mum then?” asked Hershel, still not looking at Leon. He tried to hide how mad he was getting, but Leon could tell. “She hasn't been getting better, has she? She's been sick for a long time.”

“That's why Mum couldn't see us.” said Theodore. “But they are helping her, right?”

Leon frowned at Hershel and Theodore, thinking of a way to answer them. Rachel turned to Hershel and patted his hand.

“Don't worry.” Rachel's breathing began to get shallower.

“How can I not?” said Hershel, bitterly. “You're sick. It's all because...” Hershel clenched his fists tightly. “It's because we're here, that's why. If we were home you would be fine.”

Leon was about to say something when the door opened, Pavel standing there.

“Sorry.” Pavel had a hard time looking at any of them. “The children. They need to go now.”

Leon sighed deeply and looked at Theodore and Hershel. “We'll talk later, okay?”

“Sure. Fine.” Hershel sounded as if he didn't care, trying to dismiss Leon.

“Hershel...” whispered Rachel, getting the boy's attention. He tipped his Targent hat down, looking ashamed of his attitude towards his father.

“Mum...”

“Goodbye, Hershel. You be strong now.”

“I...” Hershel lowered his gaze away from his mother. “I'll try, Mum...Goodbye.”

“Theodore, come closer.” Theodore leaned over closer so his mother could place her hand on his cheek. “Be a good boy. Goodbye.”

“I'll come see you again, okay?”

Rachel couldn't help but quietly laugh. “I guess I shouldn't worry. You are my good little boy.”

Theodore leaned even closer and gave his mom a kiss on the cheek before whispering goodbye and getting up. Theodore then followed Hershel, who had gotten up already. The two went out the door with Pavel.

Leon hung his head, clasping his other hand onto Rachel's. “I'm...so sorry, Rachel. It's my fault you're here. You, the boys... all of this is my fault. I dragged all of you into this...”

“No, Leon. Don't say that. You didn't drag any of us into anything.”

Leon could hear her struggling to talk. She must have used up a lot of energy for the boys.

“I was always happy to be by your side. I should be the one apologizing...”

Leon looked up and at Rachel, surprised to hear that.

Rachel's smile faded, tears building in her eyes. “I wish I could stay with you and the boys, but... I've run out of time.”

“I...”

“Leon.” Rachel interrupted him. “Please. I know it will be hard, and I know it's selfish of me to ask you to do this all alone... but please protect them. Protect them from the cruelty of the world they live in now.”

“I can't.” Leon shook his head. “I can't even see them when I want too. How--”

“You can.” Rachel forced one more smile, though Leon could see how weak it was. “I know you can do this, you're stronger than you give yourself credit. So are they, but they need their father to stay strong too. They are going to grow up to be such smart young men. I know they will do something great, because they have such a wonderful father...”

“Please...” Leon couldn't accept this. He felt himself falling apart. “Don't leave me. I can't do this without you.”

Rachel's grip on Leon's hands loosened. “I know I won't be by your side anymore, but... I'll always be...watching over you.”

With that, Rachel let out one last breathe.

\-----

“My condolences.”

Leon snapped his gaze in the direction of Fin. He didn't know how he made his way out of Rachel's room, but he had. He felt so numb, as if he wasn't really there. This felt like a nightmare he just wanted to wake up from.

“Jin and I were discussing the situation and we've decided it would be best to give you the rest of the day with your children.”

Jin uncomfortably tapped the rim of his glasses, but nodded in agreement with Fin. The two stood there with a few Targent grunts on standby, doctors making their way into Rachel's room.

Leon's body began to tremble uncontrollably with anger. He was sick of hearing Fin act like he cared. How sorry could one of the men responsible for all of this be?

“This day will be hard enough having to explain to your children that their mother is gone. Again, I'm sorry this has happened to you.”

“Just... _stop_.”

“Hm? Excuse me?”

Leon glared at Fin. “I don't want to hear it from **you**. I don't want any of your false sense of compassion. My wife is _**dead**_.” Leon stepped up to Fin, the Targent guards about to make a grab for him, however Fin held his hand up to stop them.

“I know she is.” Fin said calmly. “I understand yo--”

“You understand **NOTHING!** ” growled Leon. “You have done nothing, but ruin my whole family's life! Try and understand **THAT** before you even dare try to grasp how I'm feeling right now! I don't even know why you're here!”

Fin closed his mouth and stared Leon. He was not surprised at Leon's outburst, though he was taken aback by the attack on himself. He now thought over his words carefully, seeing how on edge Leon was.

“I agree, Leon. I don't understand at all how you feel. I haven't lost anyone in my life that I can remember. I won't pretend too.” Leon was about to say something else, but Fin stopped him. “What I do know is that she was sick far before she came here and I highly doubt the outcome would be much different back in England. The trip probably exasperated her condition, but did not cause it.”

Leon disagreed, but he had no proof of this nor would he ever find out. It would change nothing to argue.

“As for why I'm here, my job has always been about the morale and well being of _every_ Targent member. That includes the two children who don't know their mother's fate yet. If you can't keep your composure, I will have to ask you to leave and instead have a stranger tell them what happened. Do you want that?”

Leon froze. He just realized that Fin was right, he still had to tell this all to Hershel and Theodore. How in the world was he going to do that?

“Can you keep yourself together, Leon?”

Leon nodded to Fin, his concern was now was talking to to his children.

“They are down the hall.”

Leon turned away from Fin and went down the direction he pointed out. He felt like he had no strength left, but he had to push through. Even if all he wanted to do was give up right then and there, he had to keep going. For his boys, he had to keep living.

It didn't take Leon long to find them. He saw them sitting on a small bench in the hall, Hershel staring at the floor while Theodore was having a conversion with Pavel, who was lazily leaning against the wall across from them.

Pavel stopped his chat with Theodore when he saw Leon come down. Hershel looked up at Leon, looking quite distraught.

Leon walked over to the two and sat down with them, one on each side. He took a deep breath and tried to think of how to even begin, but he couldn't find the words.

Nothing wanted to come out, only a lump in his throat kept forming when he tried to start.

“Dad?... Are you okay?”

Leon hadn't noticed before, but when he heard Theodore ask him that he realized he had been crying, tears falling from his face. Leon wrapped his arms around them both and held them close, placing his forehead on top of Theodore's head.

The little boy hugged his father. He had never seen his father cry before and was at a loss as to what he could do for him. Hershel ended up hugging Leon as well, though he had a better idea of what was going on.

“Just tell us.” whispered Hershel, trying his hardest to be ready for the news he did not wish to hear.

Pavel pushed off the wall and walked off, deciding to leave the Bronev family be and return for them later.

“There's something you two need to know... Your mother...”

Pavel did not look back. He didn't need to, he knew what was about to come and it was best to leave the family be.

Not that it mattered, he could hear their sobs and cries echoing throughout the halls.

  
  


** End **

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author Notes: And that is the end of “That Fateful Day”but not the end of the story itself. We will return in “Where Our Loyalty Lies”with quite a year jump. Probably... 6 or 7 years?
> 
> Hope you all enjoyed this and will join me in the next part. The comments really make my day for this little project I do for a hobby. I'd write this anyway, but it's always nice to see others enjoy it.
> 
> Thank you so much again for the comments.


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